In this session, presenters Janet Alsup from Purdue University, Lisa Eckert from Montana State University, and Jennifer Richardson from Purdue University discuss the results of a research project investigation the implications graduate coursework and graduate degrees for secondary school English language arts teachers. Our conclusions are based on an empirical, survey and interview based research project we conducted with 160 practicing teachers in Montana and Indiana that has demonstrated a statistically significant association between graduate coursework/degrees and the effective use of research-based pedagogies in the teaching of English language arts. We will review the larger-scale survey findings and then focus on individual teachers who were interviewed in more depth about their graduate school experiences and connections between these experiences and their current teacher identities and practices. We outline characteristics of graduate programs mentioned by the teachers as particularly useful and educative to them as teachers and describe how these program characteristics led to increased use of research-based pedagogies in the participants’ classrooms. Finally, we place our findings in the larger context of teacher licensure requirements in both states and recent trends in US state requirements for the continuing education of secondary teachers and open the floor for discussion of trends in graduate coursework and requirements from other IFTE countries. We hope to have a lively discussion!
We include the book chapter reporting these results, with bibliographic information, here.
We include the book chapter reporting these results, with bibliographic information, here.
Continuing Education